Keeping the body out of sight

Ervin Salianji is, for now, the only observer of the Democratic Party’s unnecessary elections. With the race for party leader over before it even began, he is the only one trying to bring transparency to a degrading process in the branch elections. That alone has created more tension than if he had actually run.

Berisha’s crude claims—that Salianji is linked to crime and to Edi Rama—show who really controls the opposition. All this comes down to one thing: Salianji is exposing the process, branch by branch. At times it has led to sharp clashes, like in Korça, where voting was halted after it became clear the party electorate no longer matched the party itself.

As if attacking Salianji were not enough, Berisha also went after media owner Irfan Hysenbelliu. The reason is just as simple: any opposition outlet that gives space to Salianji and his claims must be treated the same way. The rest of the media does not matter to him. What matters is that every opposition outlet is on his side—and against Salianji.

Berisha is the only opposition leader who relies on a network of loyal, family-aligned media for propaganda, supported by oligarchs who use it to keep him satisfied. In that system, there is no room for other voices. Especially not voices in favour of Salianji. And it has worked. In pro-Berisha outlets, Salianji is almost invisible. It is as if he does not exist. That is why the attack on Irfan Hysenbelliu makes sense only as a warning to any opposition media that steps out of line.

So, in a contest that ended before it began, Sali Berisha has one concern: to keep the collapse of the Democratic Party out of public view. He knows better than anyone that this is no longer a living body, but a dead one. And now he is trying to hide it.

In fact, he cannot. The internal election process is showing, hour by hour, that the Democratic Party is finished. Berisha himself will not admit it, at least not until he formally takes back the party seal in a few weeks. Until then, he is trying to keep the body out of sight. That is why he has turned so sharply on Salianji—not because Salianji is taking anything from him, but because he has caught him in the act of abusing something that is already dead.

Originally published in Albanian as: Përpjekje për të fshehur kufomën nga sytë e publikut